World's Finest
by Navar Darkblade
Summary: When the Joker returns to his roots as the criminal overlord in Metropolis, it will take the combined efforts of Batman and Superman to stop him.  Done in the style of Batman Begins.
1. 0 Prologue

World's Finest

**A/N: Hello readers! This is a story of the World's Finest superhero's: Batman and Superman, meeting up to tackle evil. This is a sequel to my story: The Dark Knight which, as the title may suggest, is my version of a follow-up to Batman Begins. I don't believe it will be necessary to read that story to understand this one, as I will do my best to explain the plot points that are follow-ups from that story. I encourage those who read this story to review it. I enjoy constructive criticism as well as encouragement and complements. Now, enough of my yammering… Here is World's Finest.**

Prologue

_As I sit on this train, I think back to what has happened to me. As a child, we never had any money, growing up in the slums of Gotham City. I wanted, no, NEEDED to escape a life of worry and fear. So I used laughter. It seemed like a good idea to me. I began to see a funny side to everything. When my father beat my mother, I found the noises they made comical, when an old lady on the street got her purse stolen, I laughed at the screaming and cries for help. Then there was that night, when that boy's parents were killed in that back alley. Man, did he show waterworks. That was hilarious. I couldn't have had a better seat, up on the fire escape. If those stupid rich people had just given him what he wanted, they would have lived. Sadly, the thief-turned-murderer, Joe Chill, was apprehended. It was a crime that he got arrested really, he was just taking the initiative to escape the horrid poverty that had gotten us all down._

_Anyways, at sixteen, I left Gotham. Snuck on board the first train I could. It took me to Metropolis. At the time it had a low crime rate, almost non-existent. It was a good place to start, I could take over the city's underworld in less than two weeks. You see, the low crime rate wasn't because the cops were great, it was because they didn't have the smarts to run the operations. It was simple. Working the underworld, gaining supporters. I used decoy thefts, using my disposable thugs, to distract the police from my grander heists. When my supply of disposables began to dwindle, I would allow one of my lieutenants to get captured complete with instructions on how to get the rest of them out._

_I did this for about four years, my longest endeavor, and then it became too easy for me. I began to travel, learning the benefits and flaws of every type of criminal plan. It was necessary to learn to combine different plan types in order to avoid being caught. It was quite fulfilling._

_After about ten years of research and practice. I returned to Gotham; the crime capital of the word. I was ready to finish my career, but something happened that turned me from a logical man, with a slight comic look on life's tragedies, into a madman. Right before my plan was about to be set into motion, Gotham was disturbed by a, well I guess you could call it a gasser, hehe. The water supply was tainted by a fear toxin by some foreign society known as the League of Shadows, and was turned into a vapor by way of a device called a microwave emitter. Some punk ran into my lair, and into the surgical area while I was putting the finishing touches on my scheme. My lair just happened to be an abandoned dentist's office. He was followed in by a cop, who fired at the kid. I heard an explosion. I later found out that this was the containers of laughing gas being punctured by bullets and shrapnel from other containers. The shrapnel killed the punk and the cop, they were the lucky ones. As the laughing gas reached my nose, I wanted to run for it, but another scent washed over me. A hallucinogen. I panicked, fear washed over me, and I began to laugh. The gas amplified my already twisted sense of humor when combined with the fear._

_I lost my sanity that night, and paraded my plans of destruction all around Gotham, while wearing the make-up of a clown, which has since been surgically implemented on my face to make it permanent. I was no longer Jack Napier, I was the Joker, the Clown Prince of Crime, as the newspapers put it, rather appropriate I think. Gotham almost went down in smiles, until that wretched Batman showed up and ruined everything. I killed the woman he loved most, thanks to a tip from Ra's Al Ghul, expecting to emotionally cripple him forever, but he just got angry, I was forced to run and leave my pet, Harley Quinn, behind in a jail cell._

_Needless to say my mood is rather sour at the moment. That's why I'm going back to the place where it all began. I need to rebuild my criminal empire. So, Metropolis, get ready to smile, because I always like to leave 'em laughing!_

**A/N: Yes, this was rather short, but it was only a prologue. I wanted to set up the #1 villain in the world with a good background for this story, it may not fit the comics, but I think it makes for an interesting plot point. Please review!**


	2. 1 Riddle Me This

Riddle Me This

**A/N: Dear Readers; I hope you enjoyed the prologue. To clarify: No this story will not be written in the Joker's point of view, that was just to create a valid reason for his retreat into metropolis. Also, although OVERALL I thought Superman Returns was a good movie, I didn't like the aspect of him having a son… so that plot point will not continue into this story, but for the sake of those who create a picture in their head, Superman Returns look is what I'm going for.**

**-Gotham-**

As dusk approached in Gotham City and evil ventured out of its' hiding place to play, Bruce Wayne reflected on recent events. With his childhood sweetheart, Rachel Dawes, dead, he had set out to wreak havoc on her killer and his underlings. He imprisoned many criminals including his one-time mentor Ra's Al Ghul and the now psychotic Harleen Quinzel. But the one that mattered, the Clown Prince of Crime, the Joker, had gotten away, the echo of his maniacal laughter haunting Bruce during every waking moment.

To make matters worse, Harvey Dent, after a freak accident loosely linked to mob boss Salvatore Maroni, had fled from the hospital where he was being cared for. Dent supposedly now had two halves of a face, one was normal, unscarred, and the other, terribly melted and disfigured. Batman now had to find him, and he had a couple of leads. As Bruce Wayne descended into the Batcave to don his battle suit, he thought of his parents, the reason he became a symbol that criminals now feared, and Rachel, the reason he would continue on his crusade forevermore.

**-Metropolis-**

Clark Kent was in the cramped elevator, ready to return to his run down apartment for the evening, or so it would seem to the outside world. He was really going to just stop there and change into his Superman apparel, to keep the world safe. As he exited the elevator, he allowed his super hearing to kick in, listening to police scanners and news reports, when he heard.

"_Robbery in progress, repeat, at 2__nd__ and King's Avenue there is a jewelry robbery in progress_."

He had no time to make it to his apartment, he would have to change the old way. He found himself in the last place he ever thought he would need to return to; the inside of a phone booth.

**-Meanwhile-**

"Sounds like they went for it boss, they're sending two units," one of the men reported. There were five cloaked in the shadows of an alleyway.

"Hm," said the man who was apparently the leader. "Have they fired shots yet?"

"It's not in the report."

"Good, when they do, a majority of the force will go there, allowing us to pick off our real target with ease."

"You know boss, things have changed a lot since you ran things back in the day." Said a slim, tall member of the group.

"Really? Well all I see are the same old cops falling for the same old tricks… It's sad really, it almost breaks my smile."

"Well the cops have never been any good in this town boss, but, there's this guy… he's bullet-proof, super fast, super strong and he can fly."

"When you're done describing your boyfriend, Johnny, would you mind coming back down to Earth? No rush though, this is making a good laugh."

"No boss, I don't mean it like that. He can _really _do all that. I just can't believe you've never heard of him."

"Who?"

"Superman."

"Superman, huh? Well, well. After this little heist I should really arrange for a meeting with Super-dork. He sounds a little stiff… but I bet I can make him smile." The madman cackled loudly. He almost didn't hear the gunshots.

"_All units, repeat, all units: proceed to the robbery at 2__nd__ and King's avenue, repeat: proceed to 2__nd__ and King's avenue. Use caution, suspects are heavily armed."_

"Well boys, it's time to play." Said the madman, and he strolled out of the shadows, gun in hand to the bank across the street. He was dressed in a purple suit, complete with a green tie. His hair was dyed green, and a smile was burned across his lips.

**-Gotham-**

As he crouched atop a skyscraper in Gotham City, Batman peered over the edge, hoping that his last lead to Harvey Dent was solid. He had been following this crew of thugs for days, resisting the urge to apprehend them so that he could take out members of the gang that were higher up.

For some reason this group was obsessed with the number two, or maybe that was just Batman's imagination. He was about to swoop down to give them a little scare so that he could get some answers, but a light shone against the sky. It was as bright as the moon, but in a different place. Gordon was calling, and since the thugs weren't currently committing a crime, he knew that it would be more important to hear information that Gordon might have.

As the dark knight landed on the top of Gotham P.D. he hoped that Gordon didn't just want information from him.

"Commissioner?" he asked in a growl.

"How's the search for Harvey Dent?"

"Actually, I was about to interrogate some thugs whom I think have apprehended him before you… called."

"Well that's some rotten timing, I'm sorry Batman, but we have something slightly more pressing at the moment."

"More pressing than finding the District Attorney?"

"Yes… it would seem as though someone else wants to start a crime spree in Gotham, and he has a personal vendetta against you for some reason." Gordon held out an envelope. "We received this at four o clock today."

Batman opened the envelope, took out the piece of paper, and read it:

**Riddle me this…**

**If you do the math, you'll know the right time  
For bewitching withdrawals - a passion of mine  
The muscle and might plus a hijackers skill  
Just add them together with the mind and the will  
Now factor in days of the week that are perilously  
Open to jokes of a nature nefarious.  
Assuming you've figured the time of my venture  
You must also have sorted the place and the nature  
Though doubtful that intellect lives in those bones  
COME GET ME, my bat winged and slow minded foe!**

**A/N: I am terribly sorry about the slow update… I had family that was supposed to come on Monday, and I thought id finish the chapter on Sunday, but they told us at the last minute they were coming a day early, and so Sunday was spent cleaning…**

**EXTRA SPECIAL THANKS TO CAERANI (my mom) for writing this riddle for me amongst all of the stress over the past few days, and thanks to Spyden, Sunshine, and SupportSeverusSnape, it's good to know I'm attracting all of the S authors in the Fanfiction database, LoL please continue, encouragement helps. Please review! **


	3. 2 A Super Laugh

**A/N: SupportSeverusSnape: Yes, the Riddler does leave riddles; remember the Joker is in Metropolis… AVOIDING Batman.**

**Spyden: Glad you liked it! Yea… um without having known what the crime was beforehand, I would be hopelessly lost so good luck :p**

**FalconHorror: Hooray! You reviewed! Thank you very much on the compliment on my writing, terribly sorry about TCC, just sort of got to a point where I couldn't convey my ideas on paper… Hopefully this (and a couple other projects that are currently in the development stage) will help solidify the ideas that I have for that.**

**Okay… Here we go into chapter 2. Will Batman solve the riddle in time? Will the Joker and Superman have an encounter? Find out now!**

A Super Laugh

**-Metropolis-**

A pair of red boots landed on the ground inside Metrogems. The thugs inside immediately turned their automatic weapons on the man who had just flown through the hole they had made in the window to get in. They loaded him with lead, even though in the back of their minds, they knew it would do no good.

In a flash of color, the man circled the room and collected all of their guns. He smiled and stared at his hands which now held the dangerous machinery. They began to melt in front of all of the burglars' eyes.

"Now," Superman said, "Why would you need such a big arsenal to rob a jewelry store?"

"None of your business."

"Oh? Well why don't I make it my business?" Superman aimed a well controlled kick at the thug, being careful not to really hurt him.

The thug flew into a case of jewelry.

"Forget it Supe's there's a new boss in town, and he's gonna rid us all of you forever."

"Oh, really?"

"Yea."

Superman closed his eyes and focused on the world outside of the jewelry store.

"_Listen lady, I don't make the rules, I just collect. Now, I need your rent."_

"_Gimme that back!" – "No, it's mine now Sue." – "Moooooom!"_

"_Now ladies and gents, if you would be so kind as to step aside: I need to make a withdrawal and time is sort of against me..." – BANG! – "RICKY!"_

He opened his eyes and took off in the direction of the gunshot: Bank of Metropolis.

**-Gotham-**

"What the Hell is this?" Batman growled.

"I believe it's a riddle." Gordon replied, "And a pretty good one at that. No one in the office could solve it, and we had a good four hours before it was dark enough to light the signal. Any idea what it means?"

"Withdrawals is easy… he's robbing a bank, but I can't figure out a time from this. It says 'If you do the math.' There is no math in here! Wait… Take muscle, might, hijackers' skill. Mind and will. And days of the week open to jokes? Everyone hates Mondays, Wednesday has a silent D, and Friday, with that TGIF thing. 3 days. That adds up to 8, AM or PM?!"

"Well PM is already passed, so it must be AM, he wanted it to get to you before he did it."

"I don't know, something doesn't seem right."

"Don't worry about it, you find Harvey, we'll get cars in there at around 7 for prep. Nice job on the riddle, by the way."

"Don't congratulate me yet, Commissioner."

"Why not?"

"Because, why would this guy rob a bank at 8 AM if he knows I can only be called at night?"

"He probably wants to get you as far out of your comfort zone as he can."

"It still doesn't fit."

"It doesn't have to. He told us where and when, we nab him, he goes to jail for a long time."

Without another word, the Dark Knight jumped off of the rooftop and glided to his Batmobile, worrying all the way down, and all the way to the Batcave.

**-Metropolis-**

He strolled through the door, accompanied by his elite henchmen.

"Good evening Metropolians! I do hope that everyone has had a day full of smiles!"

All eyes turned to look at the Joker and his bodyguards, each equipped with an AK-47. Several screams erupted from the crowd.

"QUIET!" he yelled. The room went silent. "Thank you very much! Now, ladies and gents, if you would be so kind as to step aside: I need to make a withdrawal and time is sort of against me." He noticed someone trying to sneak for the door out of the corner of his eye. **BANG!** The man fell to the floor, clutching his ribs.

"RICKY!"

"Sorry about that, I just can't have anyone spoiling my fun. But on a positive note, I guarantee he won't get lead poisoning, not with that bullet anyways." He gave a little chuckle. "Now, if you would please allow us access to your vault, we will be on our way. Oh, and you five," He indicated five random civilians. "You'll accompany us to assure that they won't just close the doors behind us."

The teller opened the vault and the Joker began to fill a bag with as much money as he could.

"Maybe you're unaware, Joker. But this is _my _town." Came a very cocky voice from behind him.

Joker smiled from ear-to-ear. "Right on time big blue!" he said as he got up, tying the bag shut. "Glad to hear that the news of my fun in Gotham spread so far. Boys."

His henchmen unloaded their clips at the Kryptonian, who stood there taking it all.

"You don't watch the news too often, do you?"

"Au contrare Super-freak. I watch it quite often. I just wanted to see if the media had exaggerated, I guess not. But, don't worry, I came prepared." He raised his handgun.

"You're joking, right?"

"Superman! Was that an attempt at a funny? No matter, I'll leave you in stitches!" he fired.

As the bullet traveled, Superman didn't bother to move. When it got close, he saw his mistake. Rather than being a lead gray, this bullet was a radioactive… green. It pierced his suit and his chest, embedding itself right below his lung. He fell to the ground, and the Joker walked out of the bank, cackling the whole way.

**-Gotham-**

Bruce sat poring over the Riddle for the thousandth time when the grandfather clock upstairs told him it was 1 AM. He couldn't see anything wrong with his solution. Could his latest villain really have just been stupid, even though he challenged the Bat's intelligence?

"Is that little piece of paper really that enchanting Master Wayne?"

"It's a riddle Alfred."

"You haven't solved it yet? You've been staring at it for hours."

"No I solved it a while ago, but the solution doesn't make any sense when combined with the challenge. He's robbing a bank at eight A.M. but he's challenging the Batman to come after him."

"May I see it Master Wayne?" Bruce handed Alfred the riddle. "Well here's problem number one," he declared, almost immediately, "It's P.M. not A.M."

"How do you know that?"

"_Bewitching_ withdrawals Master Wayne. The night is known in stories to be the time most prone to witchcraft and magic. Now, muscle and might are not the same thing so there's two, a hijacker's skill, that's three. The mind and the will. Well, you can't really have one without the other, that's four. And every day of the week is open to a joke."

"_Every _day, Alfred?"

"Well yes sir. When you're confused about a day when asked, sometimes you'll say, "It's a day that ends in d-a-y. That works with every day of the week, so it's 11 P.M. Which means…"

"Which means that my new foe already has his money. He robbed the bank two hours ago."

**A/N: Superman shot with a kryptonite bullet and Batman stumped! Please review.**


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